Brutus Beefcake
Brutus joined the WWF as a heel in late 1984, managed by "Luscious" Johnny Valiant. Beefcake was a vain character, who dressed in outlandish outfits. As a singles wrestler, he feuded with David Sammartino and Hulk Hogan. Hogan sought revenge on Beefcake after he and Valiant injured Hogan's protégé, Hillbilly Jim. In the summer of 1985, Beefcake began teaming with Greg "The Hammer" Valentine. They became known as The Dream Team. They soon began challenging The US Express (Mike Rotundo and Barry Windham) for the WWF Tag Team Championship. Initially, the US Express successfully met these challenges but, at the August 24 show in the Philadelphia Spectrum, The Dream Team won the title after Beefcake rubbed Valiant’s lit cigar into Windham’s eye. They held the belts for eight months, primarily from a reformed US Express (Dan Spivey replaced the departed Windham) and The British Bulldogs. At WrestleMania 2, in Rosemont, Illinois, The Dream Team lost the title to The British Bulldogs. The Dream Team were unsuccessful and soon dropped to mid-card status. The Dream Team broke up at WrestleMania III. After defeating The Rougeau Brothers at the pay-per-view, the team had an argument and Beefcake was left in the ring while Valentine and Valiant left with Dino Bravo. This (and having had his hair cut by Adrian Adonis in a six-man match shortly before WrestleMania) provided the impetus for Beefcake to turn face. Later that night, Roddy Piper defeated Adonis. Per match stipulations, Adonis would have his head shaved. Beefcake gladly undertook this task, and earned the nickname "The Barber". Thereafter, Beefcake started bringing garden shears (with the handles taped to resemble barber poles) to the ring, and using a sleeper hold as his finishing move. After a match, he would strut around the ring, "snipping" his fingers like scissors to indicate he was about to cut his defeated opponent's hair. As he did (using either his shears or an electric razor) he would throw handfuls of hair into the air for the amusement of his fans. After coming out on top of a feud with former partner Valentine and ex-manager Valiant (whom, by the end of their feud, Beefcake had shaved completely bald), Beefcake feuded with Intercontinental Champion The Honky Tonk Man. Beefcake vowed to not only win the title, but put Honky to sleep and cut his hair. Beefcake never made good on that vow, since Honky got himself disqualified from most of their matches (wrestling titles generally do not change hands on a disqualification). Honky often had assistance from a mysterious pigtailed and sunglassed blonde named Peggy Sue (Sherri Martel sometimes played this character, but more often, "she" was Jimmy Hart in drag). Beefcake countered with a "woman" of his own: "Georgina" (George "The Animal" Steele in drag). The feud concluded at WrestleMania IV, where Honky was again disqualified, after interference from Jimmy Hart. Though Honky escaped with the title and his hair, Beefcake caught Jimmy Hart after the match and humiliated him with a partial haircut. Beefcake also feuded with "Outlaw" Ron Bass in 1988, beginning when Bass attacked him after a match on Superstars of Wrestling, lacerating his head with a spur. As a result, the injured Beefcake missed his scheduled Intercontinental championship match against The Honky Tonk Man at the first SummerSlam event on August 29. He ultimately defeated Bass in a grudge match. Beefcake then feuded with Randy Savage during 1989. On "The Brother Love Show" (an interview segment on WWF Superstars of Wrestling), Beefcake called Savage's new manager, Sensational Sherri, "Scary Sherri," and an angered Savage attacked him. Eventually, the feud became intertwined with one between Hulk Hogan and Zeus (based around the movie No Holds Barred). Hogan, the WWF World Champion, was simultaneously involved in his own feud with Savage over the title. During his match against Savage, Beefcake was assaulted by Zeus. At SummerSlam, Hogan and Beefcake teamed to defeat Savage and Zeus. The rivalry resumed when, on December 27, No Holds Barred was shown as part of a pay-per-view special called "No Holds Barred: The Movie-The Match." In the match portion of the show (taped two weeks earlier in Nashville, Tennessee), Hogan and Beefcake defeated Savage and Zeus in a steel cage match. At WrestleMania VI, Beefcake became the first person to pin Mr. Perfect in a televised singles match, ending his 18-month undefeated streak. In early 1991, a masked character (later said to have been played by Beefcake) appeared on TV attacking various heels, notably Rick Martel, Dino Bravo and Earthquake. He would run in on their matches, punch them a few times, throw a headbutt and retreat. He never wrestled a match and was never given a name. Beefcake returned in the summer of 1991, hosting an interview segment called "The Barber Shop." The Rockers split up on The Barber Shop when Shawn Michaels superkicked partner Marty Jannetty and threw him through a plate glass window; this turned Michaels heel and began his singles run to stardom. The final Barber Shop segment took place in February 1992. Newly-turned heel Sid Justice attacked Beefcake and destroyed the set, building heat for his feud with Hulk Hogan. In early 1993, Beefcake's facial injury was used in an angle with Money Inc. (Ted DiBiase and Irwin R. Schyster). In what was billed as Beefcake's "comeback match", he defeated DiBiase by disqualification when DiBiase and Schyster double-teamed him. Schyster then tried to reinjure Beefcake, hitting him with a steel briefcase. Longtime heel manager (and manager of Money Inc.) Jimmy Hart turned face by trying to stop his team from hurting Beefcake, and Hulk Hogan returned to the WWF after a one-year hiatus. Hogan and Beefcake teamed for the first time since December 1989, as The Mega-Maniacs, with Hart as their manager. The Mega-Maniacs (with Beefcake wearing a protective facemask) challenged Money Inc. for the Tag Team Championship at WrestleMania IX and, though gaining some revenge, lost via disqualification. Shortly after WrestleMania IX, Beefcake left the WWF. Category:Current Alumni Category:World Tag Team Champions